Author's Note: Yes, I know I said I would be busy, but this idea popped into my mind, and I had to try my hand at writing this. So I managed to churn this out before my departure yay.
It was a sad day indeed, when Link stepped onto the shore of his homeland, and felt as though it was a foreign land.
He hadn't realized he'd been gone that long. The last time he set foot on the island was right after he'd received Nayru's pearl. The King of Red Lions had suggested that he go visit his grandmother. That felt like years ago. Maybe it was.
He trudged up the gentle slope of the seashore, leaving wet footprints that soon disappeared. From a distance, Link could see Sue-Belle as she made her daily rounds to the well. Now she was walking back with the pots perched atop her head, perfectly balanced. He remembered the fond days when he used to pull pranks on her, making her drop the jugs and having them shatter on the dirt path. She'd fume while he chuckled and gave her some rupees he'd found in the grass to recompense.
Now he didn't speak much to her. Or to anyone in town anymore (though he was reluctant to call this place town ever since he saw Windfall Island). He'd noticed that Zill, the runny-nose kid, wasn't outside anymore, tailing him wherever he went. Nor was Abe, who was last seen crouching in the grass, trying to catch a wild pig. No one was really outside anymore.
This wasn't a bad thing. Link had always felt a little self-conscious, running around the village in the hero clothes with a sword and shield strapped onto his back. But it wasn't as bad, since each was a gift from Orca or a sacred belonging from the great Hero of Time. All from Outset. Now, he was traipsing through town with the mirror shield glinting in the sunlight, and the Master Sword, the blade of evil's bane itself. He did his best to try to act normal, like he'd never killed enemies ten times his size or faced challenges that took every ounce of courage he had. He tried to ignore the tittering of the people whenever he passed by them. But it was impossible to miss the whispers of the few townsfolk who were outside, wondering where has Link been, why was he gone so long, why does he seem so different now.
The worst was when someone would hesitantly approach Link and ask timidly if he had rescued his sister yet. Aryll. The whole reason he'd set off and left the world as he knew it. But even before then, he wanted to save that stranger girl in the Fairy Woods. If he had known his childhood would end the moment he picked up a sword, would he had done it? Trained with Orca, venture into the mysterious Fairy Woods, fight and slaughtered those impish creatures, and save that pirate girl Tetra? Just so that Aryll would tread upon that forsaken bridge?
One moment, it was his beloved sister waving to him on that bridge. The next moment, that monster bird. Then, dangling off a cliff, helplessly watching his sister shrink into a speck in the distance. After that, jumping from ropes. Waddling about in barrels. Sailing. Swinging around from that device Medli had given him. Slaying monsters. Learning songs on that magic baton. Sailing. Flying. Pearls. Bombs. That endless rain and night. Cyclones. A rising tower. Hyrule.
It wasn't long when that whole ordeal melted into a mission to save the world. He'd saved his sister just in time for him to have to save the world. His childhood had ended with that one naive notion to help a girl he didn't even know.
He couldn't tell if he regretted that decision or not. Yes, it was Tetra's fault that his sister was kidnapped. But would it have happened anyway?
Link shuffled to his former home. His feet thudded as he made his way up the wooden ramp and on the porch. Then, he knocked and entered.
The house was warm, homey almost, as Link passed the threshold of the cottage. His grandmother was humming to herself as she tended to the soup. Link noticed that she still had the fairy that Link had presented to her when she was still depressed. He didn't miss the irony of that, either.
He cleared his throat a little. "Grandma, I'm here." He didn't even bother saying "home" anymore.
She turned around and her face brightened. "Why Link, you're home! Do you need more soup?"
Link nodded and held out an empty bottle. "Yes, please." His voice cracked a little, revealing that it was that time in a boy's life when he started maturing. But he knew that he had long gone through the process of growing up mentally into a man through his trials.
"What a well-mannered boy!" She took it from it and ladled the soup into the bottle. She filled it so full that Link had a bit of a hard time trying not to spill the soup when he corked it. The cork was soaked as it absorbed some of the soup.
"Thank you," Link said politely but tiredly as he turned for the door.
"Yes, Link. Come by whenever you need soup. Bye!" His grandma turned back to the soup. As the door creaked shut, Link could still hear her chatting with the fairy and laughing.
Link adjusted his eyes to the bright glare of the sun. Soup wasn't the reason he'd returned. According to the IN-credible chart, the last triforce chart was hidden somewhere on this very island.
He was to search for them all, so that he could save the world. And he was supposed to hurry, lest Ganon rules over the Great Sea because of Link's procrastination, as his boat had harshly pointed out. Everything depended on an adolescent boy who couldn't even say hi to his sister. There was a reason why he put off looking for this chart, after all.
He wearily jogged around the village, searching for a secret chamber or a hidden tunnel where the chart could be. When it was apparent that it wasn't in the village, Link had to go up the path that led to the highest point of the island. Where the bridge used to be.
Of course, to do that, he had to pass the short path that led to Aryll's Lookout. Link had avoided even taking a glimpse of it during his whole stay here. But he decided that it wouldn't do him any good. After all, he wasn't trying to forget her, was he?
He considered taking a detour and climbing up to the lookout. But he decided that it would waste too much time and energy. He tried to convince himself that if he had more time, he would.
He headed up the trail. Thick walls bordered the pathway. Each shout or cry Link made as he cut trees and grass echoed off them, making a sound like whispering. Finally, he reached the top.
And of course, one of the Old Man Ho Hos was there, of all places. The way he peered out his telescope reminded Link too much of Aryll. But, after a moment, he somehow managed to decently hold himself together.
He knew it would be smart to see what was at the end of the man's discovery. But he couldn't find it in himself to pull out Aryll's telescope. Stubbornly, he pulled out his pictobox instead, even if it made things look more blurry. What he saw made him certain it was where the last chart was. It was a stone head. It was probably held a secret cave under it.
Link jumped and flew back to the foot of the cliff where it was. By means of the hook shot, he made his way there. As he stood by the stone, all he wanted was to go back and play with the neighborhood kids and be a child again and just forget about his quest. But no, everything depended on him. And he was an outcast in his homeland, anyway.
He didn't want to do it for them, though. He wasn't interested about the fate of the world. As of the moment, Aryll was all that mattered to him.
He was so lonely in his own home because she wasn't there. It was hardly even home without her chirpy voice and her cheery laugh. She wasn't there, at her lookout, staring out to sea and playing with seagulls.
So he decided, if he wasn't going to try for the world, he had to try for his little sister. She was his world, after all.
Author's note: This is like my first angst fic ever. It sorta started as Link bring a little wistful but ended with him just being stressed and depressed, so um yeah...sorry. Hope it wasn't that bad! So if you have any comments, critiques, or the like, you can leave it as a review or a PM. Thanks!